Knowledge Management as a strategy for competitive advantage in Industrial Production: A case of Rift Valley Textiles Industries (Rivatex), Eldoret

Abstract

Business information and knowledge is continuously being created. This in turn requires organizations to continually update their information and knowledge as well as making contributions to the existing knowledge. They require current information and knowledge due to changing dynamics in market driven by connectivity, technology, industry, convergence and consumers’ activism and involvement. Although organizational learning has been instituted in both public and private sectors, the extend of its application is unclear. The study therefore sought to establish the effects of organizational learning and knowledge management for competitive and effective productivity. The study was guided by the theory of connectivism developed by Siemens in 2005 and aimed to identify the use of culture of learning in the organization, to establish how business competitive and effective productivity can be realized through organizational learning, to examine the types of organizational leaning practices used in the implementing competitive and effective productivity process and to establish the various challenges faced by managers and employees in implementing learning process. The study adopted a case study design and was undertaken in Rift Valley Textiles Industries; Eldoret. The study adopted simple random sampling and stratified sampling techniques. A sample of 150 respondents was selected. The nature of data involved was both qualitative and quantitative data. Data was collected through the use of structured questionnaires and interviews. It was established that at the organization, learning was eminent due to learning practices and processes, that competitive advantage and effective productivity had been achieved through leaning and management of knowledge, it also established that the company faces challenges in the institutionalizing of learning. The study recommends that the company should institutionalize learning strategies, promote participative management provide incentives, promote use ICT in learning and promote performance coaching and management support.